I want to bring in our chief white house correspondent jonathan karl, because jon, as we know, it's one thing for the president and his speech to call for limitless possibilities. It's another thing to make it happen. What happens next? Reporter: Well, that's right. That was the big, the lofty, the ambitious today. Tomorrow, reality comes back. The president, if you looked at that stage, sitting around him were the keeps to the success or failure of the second term agenda. More than any other person, right over his right shoulder, the speaker of the house, john boehner. Boehner, more than any other person, can derail the president's agenda. Everything the president wants to do must go through a republican-controlled house, led by speaker boehner. Somebody who deeply disagrees with him on top priorities, like gun control and climate change. He somehow must find a way to work with boehner. But it's not just house republicans. It's also some democrats. Moderate democrats in the senate who are pro-gun, pro-oil, who the president must find a way to work with. And the key there, more than anybody, is vice president biden, also on the stage with the president. You could consider biden the president's ambassador to capitol hill. Quite simply, he has better relationships, deeper ties. He's liked better by members of both parties than the president himself. So, biden is going to be more important than he was even in the first term. But then you have what the president was looking out on as he gave the speech. Hundreds of thousands of supporters. Those were the people that helped him get re-elected, that helped him win the first time. And now the president wants to transform his re-election campaign into a vast grass roots army that won't be getting him re-elected again, but will work to build public support and put pressure on congress to support his agenda. And trust me, diane, he will need it. Because right now, on any one of those top priorities for the president, he faces an uphill battle getting the votes he needs to win in congress. You might say that as of right now, he may not have the votes to pass any of it.

This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.

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